Aneurysm clip

ABSTRACT

An aneurysm clip ( 1 ) is provided with two arms ( 2, 3 ) which are resiliently pivotable towards each other and carry at their free end clamping bars ( 12, 13 ) which are resiliently clamped against each other by the spring force of the arms, with outwardly curved sections of the arms adjoining the clamping bars and jointly forming a receiving space ( 10 ) for a vessel ( 11 ). In order to improve the safety of the application and the possibility of varying the application of the aneurysm clip, the clamping bars protrude from the arms towards both sides and thereby project laterally on both sides over the width of the arms in the outwardly curved sections.

[0001] The invention relates to an aneurysm clip with two arms which areresiliently pivotable towards each other and carry at their free endclamping bars which are resiliently clamped against each other by thespring force of the arms, with outwardly curved sections of the armsadjoining the clamping bars and jointly forming a receiving space for avessel.

[0002] Such aneurysm clips are known, for example, from EP 0 346 084 A1or from U.S. Pat. No. 3,802,437.

[0003] In the clips of U.S. Pat. No. 3,802,437 outwardly curved sectionswhose width corresponds to the length of the clamping bars adjoin therelatively long clamping bars so as to produce a sleeve-shaped receivingspace for a vessel. When several such aneurysm clips are appliedalongside one another to a vessel, these outwardly curved, sleeve-shapedsections may impede one another and so it is not possible to place theseclips in the desired manner close to one another.

[0004] In the aneurysm clip of EP 0 346 084 the clamping bars are bentlaterally out of the center plane of the aneurysm clip to produce anasymmetrical arrangement, which involves the danger of the clips slidingdown at one side. The one-sided stress on the clips by the bent clampingbars can result in canting and wedging, which can put the safety of theapplication of such an aneurysm clip at risk.

[0005] The object of the invention is to so improve a generic aneurysmclip that it enables, on the one hand, an unimpeded application, also ofa plurality of clips, to a vessel, and, on the other hand, aparticularly reliable sealing-off in the area of the clamping bars.

[0006] This object is accomplished with an aneurysm clip of the kinddescribed at the outset, in accordance with the invention, in that theclamping bars protrude from the arms towards both sides and therebyproject laterally on both sides over the width of the arms in theoutwardly curved sections.

[0007] Such an aneurysm clip thus has relatively narrow arms in the areaof the outwardly curved sections, but clamping bars which extendessentially transversely to the center plane of the aneurysm clip andproject towards either side over the width of the arms are arranged atthe end of the arms. The clamping bars are, therefore, supported oneither side of the center plane of the aneurysm clip, and, at the sametime, it is possible to place several aneurysm clips closely alongsideone another because the arms are narrower than the clamping bars in thearea of the outwardly curved sections surrounding the vessel. Therefore,several clips can be applied in such a way that their clamping barsoverlap at the sides, while the arms are placed closely alongside oneanother in the outwardly curved sections. It is thus possible for theoperator to apply several aneurysm clips to a vessel in such a way thata dividing line is ensured, possibly several times, and owing to theprotruding of the clamping bars from the arms on either side, theaneurysm clips are optimally secured against canting and undesiredtwisting and therefore against sliding down.

[0008] Provision is made in a preferred embodiment for the clamping barsto be of straight-lined design in their longitudinal direction.

[0009] It is, however, also possible for the clamping bars to be bent intheir longitudinal direction, and the arms can be arranged on the convexside of the clamping bars or on the concave side of the clamping bars sothat the clamping bars are bent either away from the arms or towards thearms.

[0010] It is particularly advantageous for the clamping bars to be ofsymmetrical design in relation to the center plane of the aneurysm clip.The aneurysm clip can then be applied in the same way in bothdirections, and, in addition, the forces exerted on the clip by thesymmetrical design are equal, which reliably prevents tilting andsliding down.

[0011] In particular, provision may be made for the clamping bars toextend in the area of connection to the arms at an angle of 90° to thecenter plane of the aneurysm clip.

[0012] However, in a special embodiment provision may also be made forthe clamping bars to extend in the area of connection to the arms at anincline to the center plane of the aneurysm clip so that it is possibleto arrange the arms such that they are at an incline in relation to theclamping line defined by the clamping bars.

[0013] In particular, the outwardly curved section can be ofsubstantially circular design.

[0014] It is, however, also possible for the outwardly curved section tobe oval design. This is expedient, particularly when the clamping barsextend at an incline to the center plane of the aneurysm clip becausethe outwardly curved section can then surround a vessel of substantiallycircular cross section when the arms also extend at an incline relativeto the vessel.

[0015] The clamping bars can have a length which is between twice andeight times the width of the arms in the outwardly curved section.Clamping bars of different length can also be united in a set of suchaneurysm clips.

[0016] The aneurysm clip can be of such design that the two arms arejoined to each other by a resilient connecting section, for example, asingle or multiple winding of a spring wire which continues in the twoarms.

[0017] In another embodiment provision may be made for the two arms tobe pivotally connected to each other and clamped against each other by aseparate spring. In particular, this spring itself can form a bearingshaft for the pivot bearing of the two arms.

[0018] The arms connected to the clamping bars can have at least oneopening in the area adjoining the clamping bars so that the arms aredivided into two webs, each of which is connected to the clamping bars.

[0019] In particular, in this embodiment provision may be made for thearms in this area to be wider so that the webs extend in the shape of aV. Such a widening of the arms is also possible without provision of anopening.

[0020] The following description of preferred embodiments of theinvention serves in conjunction with the drawings to explain theinvention in greater detail. The drawings show:

[0021]FIG. 1 a side view of a first preferred embodiment of an aneurysmclip applied to a vessel, and a straight-lined clamping bar which incomparison with the width of the clamping arms is long;

[0022]FIG. 2 a sectional view taken along 2-2 in FIG. 1;

[0023]FIG. 3 a view similar to FIG. 1 with three aneurysm clips appliedalongside one another with short, straight-lined clamping bars and aresilient connecting section;

[0024]FIG. 4 a sectional view taken along 4-4 in FIG. 3;

[0025]FIG. 5 a view similar to FIG. 4 with aneurysm clips with clampingbars of different lengths applied in offset relation to one another;

[0026]FIG. 6 a view similar to FIG. 3 with two aneurysm clips withshort, straight-lined clamping bars and an aneurysm clip withstraight-lined clamping bars extending at an incline;

[0027]FIG. 7 a view similar to FIG. 3 with a single aneurysm clip withclamping bars bent away from the arms;

[0028]FIG. 8 a view similar to FIG. 7 with clamping bars bent towardsthe arms; and

[0029]FIG. 9 a view of a modified embodiment of an aneurysm clip similarto that of FIG. 5 with arms which widen in the shape of a V and have anopening.

[0030] The aneurysm clip 1 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 comprises two arms 2,3 made of a band-shaped material of rectangular cross section. At theirrear end, both arms are bent in the shape of a circular arc and thusform a substantially circular bearing section 4 in which a helicalspring 5 essentially consisting of two wound layers is located. Thishelical spring 5 abuts on the inner sides of the bearing section 4 andforms a bearing shaft which joins the two arms 2 and 3 in the area ofthe bearing section 4 for pivotal movement about the axis of the bearingsection 4. The free ends 6, 7 of the helical spring 5 are supported onthe outer side of the two arms 2, 3 immediately adjacent to the bearingsection 4 on the latter and pivot the two arms 2 and 3 towards eachother in such a way that they can only be pivoted apart elasticallyagainst the force of the helical spring 5.

[0031] Adjoining the bearing section 4 is a short intermediate section 8in which the arms 2 and 3 extend parallel to each other and essentiallyabut on one another when the clip is closed.

[0032] This intermediate section 8 passes into a front vessel section 9in which the two arms 2, 3 are outwardly bent in the shape of asemicircle and thus enclose a substantially circular receiving space 10which receives a vessel 11 when the aneurysm clip is applied.

[0033] At their free ends, both arms 2, 3 are connected tostraight-lined clamping bars which in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1and 2 extend parallel to the pivot axis of the two arms 2, 3, i.e.,protrude vertically from the center plane of the aneurysm clip 1 towardsboth sides, more particularly, in the same way towards both sides, i.e.,in the area of the clamping bars 12, 13 the aneurysm clip is ofsymmetrical design in relation to its center plane. The clamping bars12, 13 are located directly opposite each other and are pressed againsteach other by the helical spring 5 in the closed state such that theyabut on one another throughout their entire length.

[0034] In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the length of theclamping bars 12, 13 in their longitudinal direction is approximatelyeight times greater than the width of the arms 2, 3 in the area of thereceiving space 10.

[0035] To apply the aneurysm clip 1 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, thearms 2 and 3 are pivoted outwards against the force of the helicalspring 5, for example, by pressure on projections 14, 15 protrudingradially at the rear ends of the arms 2, 3 so that the clamping bars 12and 13 can be guided past a vessel 11 until the vessel 11 is located inthe area of the receiving space 10 in the vessel section 9. When closingthe aneurysm clip 1, the arms 2 and 3 are pivoted towards each otherunder the action of the helical spring 5, and the clamping bars 12, 13position themselves at vessel walls 16 of a protuberance or an aneurysmprotruding at the sides from the vessel 11 and thus close off thisprotuberance towards the vessel 11 over the entire width thereof. Oneaneurysm clip 1 of the described kind is thus sufficient to close off aprotuberance over quite a large area in essentially the shape of a line.Owing to the relatively large length of the clamping bars 12, 13, thislength is substantially greater than the width of the arms 2, 3 and thusalso the width of the aneurysm clip 1 in a direction perpendicular tothe center plane.

[0036] A similar arrangement is shown in the embodiment of FIGS. 3 and4, and, therefore, corresponding parts bear the same reference numerals.

[0037] Differently from the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2, the arms 2 and3 of this embodiment are not pivotally joined to each other in the areaof a bearing section 4 by a helical spring 5, but instead the two arms 2and 3 are joined to each other by an elastic connecting section 17having two legs 18 and 19, which are each joined to one of the arms 2and 3, respectively, and are joined together by an elastic web 20 sothat the legs 18 and 19 are elastically bendable apart owing to theinherent elasticity of the web. In the area of the web 20, the materialof the connecting section 17 can be formed through 360° on itself in theform of an eyelet or helix so as to produce an elastic coil by means ofwhich the inherent elasticity in the area of the web 20 can beincreased. It is preferable for the arms 2 and 3 and the connectingsection 17 to be integrally made from an elastic material, for example,from spring wire, but it is also possible for the connecting section 17to be joined to arms made of a different material, for example, the arms2, 3 can consist of a sterilizable plastic material and be joined tolegs 18 and 19 made of spring wire.

[0038] In the embodiment of FIGS. 3 and 4, the arms 2 and 3 also form avessel section 9 with clamping bars 12, 13 arranged at the front endthereof. However, in the embodiment of FIGS. 3 and 4 these aresignificantly shorter than in the embodiment of FIG. 1, the length ofthe clamping bars in this embodiment being only approximately threetimes the width of the arms 2, 3.

[0039] It is thereby possible to arrange several such aneurysm clips 1directly alongside one another on a vessel 11 in the area of the vesselwall 16 bulging out at the side so that a line-shaped clamping is alsoachieved, but using three aneurysm clips 1 and thus employing a higherclamping force since each aneurysm clip 1 exerts its inherent clampingforce on a shorter clamping bar 12, 13.

[0040] It is, of course, also possible to use aneurysm clips 1 withcorrespondingly short clamping bars, which like the aneurysm clip 1 ofFIGS. 1 and 2 do not have an elastic connecting section 17 at theirdisposal, but a bearing section 4 with a helical spring 5.

[0041] Aneurysm clips 1 which are of essentially the same constructionas in the embodiment of FIG. 3 are used in the embodiment of FIG. 5.Aneurysm clips whose clamping bars 12, 13 are of different length areused at only one point of application. In addition, the dimensions ofthe aneurysm clips 1 and 2 in the longitudinal direction are selected soas to differ, and so, for example, the center aneurysm clip 1 of FIG. 5is of somewhat longer construction than the two aneurysm clips 1 at thesides. The clamping bars 12, 13 of the three aneurysm clips 1 can thusbe arranged at a different spacing from the vessel 11. An overlapping ofneighboring clamping bars 12, 13 is, therefore, possible, and aparticularly effective closure of the vessel wall 16 of a lateralprotuberance is thereby achieved. The different length is, for example,achievable by the vessel section 9 in the case of the longer aneurysmclip 1 not—as in the case of the other aneurysm clips 1—surrounding acircular area, but an oval area which is elongate in the longitudinaldirection.

[0042] The aneurysm clips shown in FIG. 6 correspond to those of FIG. 3,and corresponding parts bear the same reference numerals.

[0043] In the embodiment of FIG. 6, one of the three aneurysm clipsarranged alongside one another is replaced by an aneurysm clip on whichthe clamping bars 12, 13 extend at an incline to the longitudinaldirection of the arms 2, 3, i.e., at an incline to the center plane ofthe aneurysm clip 1. Also, in this embodiment of the aneurysm clip 1 anoval vessel section 9 is likewise effected, with its long axis runningin the longitudinal direction of the aneurysm clip 1.

[0044] It is thus possible to apply this aneurysm clip 1 to the vessel11, also from the side opposite the vessel 11, such that the vessel wall16 is clamped off in continuation of the clamping bars 12, 13 of the twoother aneurysm clips 1, with this aneurysm clip 1 then not surroundingthe vessel 11, but the vessel wall 16 of the protuberance.

[0045] The aneurysm clips of FIGS. 7 and 8 correspond fully to those ofFIG. 3, with the difference that the clamping bars 12, 13 are not ofstraight-lined construction, but have the shape of a circular arc. Inthe embodiment of FIG. 7 the arms 2, 3 are located on the convex side ofthe arcuate clamping bars 12, 13, in the embodiment of FIG. 8 on theconcave side. In both cases, the construction of the clamping bars 12,13 is symmetrical in relation to the center plane, and clamping bars 12,13 located opposite each other are, of course, of the same design sothat the clamping surfaces of these clamping bars 12, 13 lie oppositeeach other throughout their entire surface during the closing.

[0046] A further preferred embodiment of an aneurysm clip whichcorresponds substantially to the constructions shown in FIG. 5 is shownin FIG. 9. In this embodiment, the arms 2, 3 are widened in the areaadjoining the clamping, bars 12, 13 and have an opening 21 so that thearms 2, 3 extend in the form of two webs 22 and 23 arranged in the shapeof a V and opening into the clamping bars 12, 13.

What is claimed is:
 1. Aneurysm clip (1) with two arms (2, 3) which areresiliently pivotable towards each other and carry at their free endclamping bars (12, 13) which are resiliently clamped against each otherby the spring force of the arms (2, 3), with outwardly curved sections(9) of the arms (2, 3) adjoining the clamping bars (12, 13) and jointlyforming a receiving space (10) for a vessel (11), characterized in thatthe clamping bars (12, 13) protrude from the arms (2, 3) towards bothsides and thereby project laterally on both sides over the width of thearms (2, 3) in the outwardly curved sections (9).
 2. Aneurysm clip asdefined in claim 1, characterized in that the clamping bars (12, 13) areof straight-lined design in their longitudinal direction.
 3. Aneurysmclip as defined in claim 1, characterized in that the clamping bars (12,13) are bent in their longitudinal direction.
 4. Aneurysm clip asdefined in claim 3, characterized in that the arms (2, 3) are arrangedon the convex side of the clamping bars (12, 13).
 5. Aneurysm clip asdefined in claim 3, characterized in that the arms (2, 3) are arrangedon the concave side of the clamping bars (12, 13).
 6. Aneurysm clip asdefined in claim 1, characterized in that the clamping bars (12, 13) areof symmetrical design in relation to the center plane of the aneurysmclip (1).
 7. Aneurysm clip as defined in claim 2, characterized in thatthe clamping bars (12, 13) are of symmetrical design in relation to thecenter plane of the aneurysm clip (1).
 8. Aneurysm clip as defined inclaim 3, characterized in that the clamping bars (12, 13) are ofsymmetrical design in relation to the center plane of the aneurysm clip(1).
 9. Aneurysm clip as defined in claim 1, characterized in that inthe area of connection to the arms (2, 3) the clamping bars (12, 13)extend at an angle of 90° to the center plane of the aneurysm clip (1).10. Aneurysm clip as defined in claim 6, characterized in that in thearea of connection to the arms (2, 3) the clamping bars (12, 13) extendat an angle of 90° to the center plane of the aneurysm clip (1). 11.Aneurysm clip as defined in claim 1, characterized in that in the areaof connection to the arms (2, 3) the clamping bars (12, 13) extend at anincline to the center plane of the aneurysm clip (1).
 12. Aneurysm clipas defined in claim 1, characterized in that the outwardly curvedsection (9) is of substantially circular design.
 13. Aneurysm clip asdefined in claim 6, characterized in that the outwardly curved section(9) is of substantially circular design.
 14. Aneurysm clip as defined inclaim 9, characterized in that the outwardly curved section (9) is ofsubstantially circular design.
 15. Aneurysm clip as defined in claim 1,characterized in that the outwardly curved section (9) is of ovaldesign.
 16. Aneurysm clip as defined in claim 6, characterized in thatthe outwardly curved section (9) is of oval design.
 17. Aneurysm clip asdefined in claim 11, characterized in that the outwardly curved section(9) is of oval design.
 18. Aneurysm clip as defined in claim 1,characterized in that the clamping bars (12, 13) have a length which isbetween twice and ten times the width of the arms (2, 3) in theoutwardly curved section (9).
 19. Aneurysm clip as defined in claim 6,characterized in that the clamping bars (12, 13) have a length which isbetween twice and ten times the width of the arms (2, 3) in theoutwardly curved section (9).
 20. Aneurysm clip as defined in claim 9,characterized in that the clamping bars (12, 13) have a length which isbetween twice and ten times the width of the arms (2, 3) in theoutwardly curved section (9).
 21. Aneurysm clip as defined in claim 11,characterized in that the clamping bars (12, 13) have a length which isbetween twice and ten times the width of the arms (2, 3) in theoutwardly curved section (9).
 22. Aneurysm clip as defined in claim 1,characterized in that the two arms (2, 3) are joined to each other by aresilient connecting section (17).
 23. Aneurysm clip as defined in claim1, characterized in that the two arms (2, 3) are pivotally connected toeach other and are clamped against each other by a separate spring (5).24. Aneurysm clip as defined in claim 23, characterized in that thespring (5) itself forms a bearing shaft for the pivot bearing of the twoarms (2, 3).
 25. Aneurysm clip as defined in claim 1, characterized inthat the pivotable arms (2, 3) have an opening (21) in the area in whichthey adjoin the clamping bars (12, 13).
 26. Aneurysm clip as defined inclaim 1, characterized in that the arms (2, 3) widen towards theclamping bars (12, 13) in the area in which they adjoin the clampingbars (12, 13).